Brush support



W. M. BARR BRUSH SUPPORT April 23, 1957 Filed March 9, 1955 INVENTOR. muM. Bales BY /W- fl limited States Patent U BRUSH SUPPORT William M.Barr, Memphis, Tenn., assignor to King Associates, Memphis, T mm, acorporation of Tennessee Application March 9, 1953, Serial No. 341,3ii7

3 Claims. (Cl. 15121.2)

This invention is a brush support adapted to be used as an accessory ina can containing a liquid paint brush cleaner.

In the cleaning of brushes, such as are used for the application ofpaints, varnishes, enamels and other filmforming materials, it is thecommon practice to immerse the bristle portion of the brush in a liquidpaint cleaner contained in a can. The cleaner serves to loosen from thebristles of the brush the film-forming materials, which thereupon settleto the bottom of the can. If the brush is permitted to rest upon thebottom of the can, the freed materials form a layer in the can bottom inwhich the ends of the bristles remain in contact, so that the brush isnot entirely cleaned under this practice. Accordingly, the brushes arefrequently suspended from the edge of the can by different expedients soas to space the ends of the bristles from the bottom of the can andthereby free them from contact with the accumulated sediment in suchcan.

Various devices have heretofore been suggested to space the brush fromthe bottom of the can, but none of them has proved satisfactory for manyreasons.

The object of the invention is to provide a novel brush support whichmay be positioned in the bottom of a can and on which support a brushmay be placed in such manner as to space the brush from the can bottom.

The support of this invention embodies many novel features particularlyadapting it for incorporation directly into the can in which a liquidbrush cleaner is marketed, so that the brush cleaner becomes, in effect,a part of the merchandised article, being anchored within the can in asufliciently positive manner to provide against its displacement duringshipment and subsequent handling.

In its preferred practical form, the support of this invent-ioncomprises a reticulated member formed from wires extendinglongitudinally and transversely of the device and spaced apart in bothdirections after the manner of a Wire mesh screen with downturnedmargins constituting a skirt-like portion, the lower edge of which isadapted to rest upon the bottom of a can. The device, when positioned inthe can, covers the bottom of the can and forms a platform on whichbrushes may rest in spaced relation to the bottom of the can and abovethe sediment which may accumulate therein.

By preference the ends of the wires are so arranged as to firmly gripthe side walls of the can so as to anchor the device in position at thebottom of the can and thus prevent its inadvertent displacement.

Features of the invention, other than those adverted to, will beapparent from the hereinafter detailed description and appended claimswhen read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.

The accompanying drawing illustrates one practical embodiment of theinvention, but the construction therein shown is to be understood asillustrative, only, and not as defining the limits of the invention.

Fig. 1 is a top view of the device as it appears before it is positionedin a can.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of said device.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation thereof.

Fig. 4 shows the device in position in a can, the can being shown insection and the device also shown in section in the plane of the line4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a similar section, but showing the device in section in theplane of the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

The brush support of this invention is constructed from longitudinalwires 1 and transverse wires 2 with the longitudinal wires preferablyoverlying the transverse wires and spot welded to the latter at theirpoints of crossing to provide a reticulated structure of fairly openwire mesh. The openings in the mesh should be large enough to permit thepassage of sediment therethrough, but should be small enough to supportthe bristle end of a brush.

The wires are bent so that the device embodies a substantially flat top3 with a surrounding depending skirt 4, at the lower edge of which theindividual wires protrude for a short distance as shown, whereby, whenthe device is seated in the base of the can, these Wires may dig intothe wall of the can sufficiently to anchor the device in place.

As appears from Fig. l of the drawing, the device, prior to itsintroduction into the can C, has rounded ends while its sides aresubstantially straight. it has a length somewhat greater than the radiusof the inside of the can C with which it is to be associated and itswidth is slightly less than the diameter of the can open ing 0. It isadapted to be introduced into the can edgewise, so that its lesser widthmay be passed through the can opening 0 and, after so introduced, it ispressed down firmly to the bottom of the can by any appropriate pressureapplying means.

It will be noted that the skirt portion 4 of the device is of flaredformation. Consequently when downward pressure is applied throughout theflat upper surface 3 of the device, this upper surface will bemaintained flat, while the walls of the can will force the oppositebowed ends of the device inwardly to conform said ends to the contiguousportions of the wall of the can and produce the result indicated in Fig.4. At the same time the flared portion of the sides of the device willbe further flared in a lateral direction and into contact with the wallsof the can, as shown in Fig. 5, due to an increased flattening effect ofthe pressure on the top of the device, for it will be noted,particularly from Figs. 2 and 3, that the skirt is not so deep at theends of the device as it is at the sides. Hence the longitudinal edgesof the skirt will engage with the bottom of the can before thetransverse edges of the skirt thus engage and consequently the continuedpressure necessary to engage the latter walls will effect the spreadingof the longitudinal walls and the contraction of the transverse walls ofthe skirt with an overall flattening of the upper surface of the deviceto provide a substantially flat upper surface on which a brush B mayrest with its bristles in engagement with said flattened surface. It isto be noted that the forcible seating of the lower edges of the skirt atthe base of the can will cause the free ends of the wires at said edgesto tend to dig into the walls of the can, so that they tightly engagewith these walls and anchor the device firmly in position, so that itwill not inadvertently lift free from the bottom of the can.

The device of this invention will of course be made of a sizeappropriate to the size of the can with which it is to be associated andit may be of any desired overall height. However, I find, in practice,that a height of /1" to 1" will more than adequate space the bristlesfrom sediment that may be deposited therefrom in the bottom of the can,when a brush is supported on a device and immersed in a liquid L, asindicated in Fig. 4.

The use of a wire construction of the character-described will not onlyproperly support a brush, as stated, but it provides a convenientreticulated ,surfacein contact with which the brush may be scrubbedtospread the bristles and enable the liquid, cleaner in the can tothoroughly penetrate the bristles and the heelrof the brush. By thisprocedure, the paint or other film-forming material contained thereinmay be loosened to facilitate its settling'to the bottom of the canwhere it is maintained free from contact with the brush.

The device of this invention may be economically manufactured and simplyand efliciently installed in a 7 can to remain undisturbed therein untilthe liquid cleaner therein has ceased to be of further use.

The foregoing detailed description sets forth the in vention in itspreferred practical form, but the invention is to be understood as fullycommensura e with the appended claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new anddesire to secure as Letters Patent is:

17 A brush support adapted for use in a press cover type can having acylindrical Wall comprising: a wire mesh body having a substantiallyfiat top merging into an outwardly bowed depending skirt extendingdownwardly from all sides of the flat top, said support being 43,789,297e p a of greater length than its width and those portions of the skirtat the longitudinal edges of the support being of greater depth thanthose portions of the skirt at the ends of the support.

2. A brush support according to claim 1, wherein the free edge of theskirt is bowed at the opposite ends of the support and substantiallystraight at its longitudinal edges.

3. A brush support for a press cover type can having a cylindrical bodyclosed at its bottom and having at its top a circular opening of lessdiameter than the body, said support comprising a wire mesh body havinga substantially fiat top merging into an outwardly bowed skirt extendingdownwardly from all sides of the flat top, said wire mesh body having alength substantially equal to the diameter of the cylindrical body ofthe can and of a width less than the diameter of the top opening of saidcan.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

